Band of the Week #173 - As December Falls
This week’s Band of the Week is Nottingham based pop-punk band As December Falls, who have just released their new album ‘Happier’. Having formed seven years ago, the band have been told they have been doing things the wrong way and to ditch the pop-punk sound to head down a more poppy-synth driven route. This album sees them sticking to their guns and coming out on top, filled with big pop-punk riffs and melodies - ‘Happier’ is their best work to date.
Hey As December Falls, how are you?
We are great! Very excited about the release of our new album.
So your album is finally here, how does it feel to have it out there in the world?
This is something we have been working on for years so to finally have it out there where everyone can hear it and connect with it is amazing. I honestly can’t wait to see what our awesome fans think of this one!
It is titled ‘Happier’, is there a meaning behind that and how does it differ from your debut album?
When we wrote our debut album, we were younger, we sung about having no money and going to bars because that’s what we were getting up to. Happier is different, it’s an unapologetic rock album that I think is much more mature, especially in regards to lyrical content and themes, because we’re adults now and quite frankly being an adult sucks sometimes. But of course we still have those catchy as hell lead lines and classic As December Falls bops which I don’t think we could ever stop writing even if we tried!
Where was it recorded? Any behind the scenes stories from the creative process?
We recorded Happier at Outhouse Studios with John Mitchell. Working with John was awesome, he’s got so much experience and has worked with so many bands we LOVE! We were very conscious of Covid when recording so when we did guitars and vocals, we stayed with John rather than a hotel to reduce any contact with other people. This meant that we were all locked away, hanging out even when we weren't recording the music. We would drink wine at night and watch youtube videos of our favourite band's performing shows and spend our days recording the album in the studio. Overall it was an amazing experience and we all had a lot of fun.
Over the years, bands similar to yourself - have ditched the guitars and headed towards a more commercially driven pop sound. You have stuck to your guns and kept that original sound despite labels and bookers telling you to change if you want to sell out shows. Over the past seven years as a band, has that ever created a struggle for you? Or do you feel it has kept you stronger and in fact made your fan base more loyal to you?
We grew up listening to classic emo and pop-punk bands. That's the music that we love to listen to and that's the music we love to play. We didn't start this band to chase hits or try and jump on each big musical wave. We started this band to write bangers that translate to high energy shows. We just knew that if we are still obsessed with the same records after 20 years that there must be other people out there who also miss that sound and those are the people that have connected with us. We're definitely not the only band who feels this way and you can definitely see emo making a comeback even in mainstream records.
What are the key themes and influences on the album?
Some of the tracks on this album show a much more vulnerable side to us, we touch on anxiety, relationships, our view of the music industry, and of course some female empowerment because that’s what I’m all about. It's definitely a darker album sonically than our first record.
Do you have a favorite lyric on the album? If so, which one and why?
I have so many lyrics that I love from this album. I could easily choose a favourite from each song!
If I had to narrow it down to just one, it would probably be:
I know it’s coming closer
Gotta let its teeth sink in
It’s like a drop of ink in the water
You can’t stop it from spreading
This is in the album's closing track ‘One Last Song.’ It is super anthemic, and the whole song is about how the music industry has largely ignored us until now. This is the middle 8, and this section is about putting our music out there and how quickly it grows and spreads, It’s only a matter of time until we get to the next step and we’re growing bigger and bigger. We love that and we know we’re getting there, we’ve just got to keep pushing our way through!
You have a huge tour coming up this November, what can we expect from your live shows?
A super energetic, upbeat set with songs from Happier, and of course all the fan favourites from our first album!